Kurdish poet İlhan Sami Çomak was released late yeserday after spending 30 years in prison.
His family members and officials from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party were among those who greeted Çomak outside the Marmara Prison in Silivri in the outskirts of İstanbul.
Speaking after his release, the 51-year-old poet reflected, “I had imagined being freed on a brighter and sunnier day, seeing the light in my loved ones’ eyes in a different atmosphere. But this is good too—I’m free at last. From a manufactured darkness, I have arrived at a true one.”
Çomak, who was arrested in İstanbul in 1994, and sentenced to life imprisonment by the now-defunct State Security Court on charges of “undermining the unity and integrity of the state.” He served time in various prisons during his 30-year incarceration.
In August, the prison administration blocked his conditional release after concluding that Çomak was not in "good behavior" and stated that he had "no awareness of the crime."
After an appeal by his attorneys, the Silivri Court of Penal Enforcement overturned the prison administration's decision, paving the way for Çomak's release
Who is İlhan Sami Çomak?
Born in 1973 in Bingöl, İlhan Sami Çomak completed his primary and secondary education there before enrolling in the Geography Department at İstanbul University in 1992. His studies were interrupted when he was detained in 1994. Çomak writes poetry not only in Turkish but also in his native Kurdish.
Over the years, Çomak has earned several literary accolades, including the 2019 Sennur Sezer Labor and Resistance Poetry and Story Award for his manuscript Geldim Sana and the 2022 Metin Altıok Poetry Prize for his collection Hayattayız Nihayet (We Are Alive at Last).
His work has been celebrated internationally, with two short films inspired by his poetry—Anatomy of Freedom and Not Home Yet—screened at the Venice Film Festival and Borders Art Festival in 2022. The films were part of the “Fragmented Identities” theme.
Çomak’s poetry has been translated into English, Norwegian, Russian, German, and Welsh. He is a member of both the Turkish PEN Writers Association and the Turkish Writers’ Union. Additionally, he holds lifetime honorary membership in organizations including Norwegian PEN, Austrian PEN, PEN Cymru in Wales, Irish PEN, and Kurdish PEN. (VK)
